Brexit-induced wobble continues to shake the UK housing market

The Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) UK Residential Market Survey for June highlights a significant levelling off in the housing market. The decline in new buyer enquiries brings them to their lowest level since 2008 and sales activity has fallen for the third month in succession.

The supply of properties has also seen a fall (except in Northern Ireland). Although the Home Builders Federation (HBF) reported on 30 June that planning permissions granted for new homes were the highest since 2008, these figures are from the first quarter of 2016 and don’t reflect the post-Brexit situation.

What hasn’t changed is the pressing need for housing. With an estimated 1.24 million people (HBF figures) on housing waiting lists, it’s clear that there is still a huge demand. While some potential buyers may be waiting until the smoke clears from the referendum, there’s good reason to believe that once stability returns the market will improve.

Indeed, the RICS survey suggests that house prices will continue to rise, albeit more slowly than previously. London and East Anglia are the exceptions to this with a dip in prices expected to persist over the next 12 months.

With Theresa May now in place as PM and the new post of Secretary of State for Exiting the EU now filled (by David Davis) we may start to see decisions being made that will reduce the uncertainty that has been the prevailing mood since 23 June.